Chapter 149
Igogusa (いご草, Igogusa) is the 149th chapter of the Golden Kamuy manga. Synopsis Gansoku decides to leave Karafuto in order to survive so he packs his belongings and waves goodbye to the soldiers. As Gansoku left, Koito asks Tsukishima if it really is alright to let him go without consulting Tsurumi first. Tsukishima tells him that Tsurumi left all the decision making up to him and turns to Sugimoto, telling him that also included what to do with him and that if he loses control of himself again, he will kill him. Gansoku's tattooed skin is ultimately added to Sugimoto and the 7th Division's collection as they draw closer to their goal. A flashback dating back to Meiji 29 (1896) begins and focuses on Tsukishima's past as he speaks to the then 2nd Lieutenant of the 2nd Division, Tsurumi. Tsukishima asks him if he knows what igoneri is and describes it as the local delicacy of Niigata. He then spoke of a girl with wild, unruly hair and so was called "Igogusa" and that he had loved her hair since she was the only one who would call him by his real name, Hajime. Tsukishima describes his life growing up as the murderer's son and did not have a good relationship with anyone else on his home island of Sado. He eventually enrolled into the 2nd Division and before leaving to fight in the Sino-Japanese War, asked Igogusa to leave the island and get married with him. Tsukishima revealed that towards the end of the war, he stopped receiving letters from Igogusa and he began to feel a sense of dread as a result. He returned to his home in Sado and learned that the locals had believed him to be dead and that Igogusa had gone missing around ten days before his return, with her shoes found on the shore. Tsukishima frantically searched for her but came up with nothing and began to think about who had spread the rumours that he had died. He was able to trace it back to his father and filled with rage, killed his own father with his hands before he had the chance to ask him why he spread the rumours about him. As a result Tsukishima was arrested and thrown into the army prison to be executed for the crime of parricide. After hearing Tsukishima's story, Tsurumi went out around Sado to do some investigation and reported back to him that Igogusa did not kill herself. Much to Tsukishima's shock, Tsurumi explained that Igogusa had been married to the son of MItsubishi's owner and that the whole island including Tsukishima's father had decided to cover it up as a grand farce since Igogusa's parents did not want her to marry a "bad boy". Tsurumi then presented a bundle of Igogusa's hair since she did not know that Tsukishima was still alive and wanted for them to be buried with his bones. Upon hearing this, a look of sorrow and relief came upon Tsukishima's face as he says there is nothing left for him to do for her. Tsurumi then asked Tsukishima if he was fluent in Russian to which he denied it. He then explained that there will be a war between Japan and Russia and that he needs Tsukishima's expertise with him in the 7th Division. When Tsukishima tried to say that he cannot speak Russian and that he was on death row, Tsurumi orders him to study the language like his life depends on it. Nine years later on Mukden during the Russo-Japanese War, a young soldier approached Tsukishima saying that he is also from Sado and asks him why he is here. The young soldier then revealed that right after Tsukishima was caught, Igogusa's body had been found. Upon realizing that Tsurumi had lied to him, Tsukishima roared at him and questioned why he would lie to him with fury in his eyes as Tsurumi coldly stares back at him. Character Appearances *Tsurumi *Hajime Tsukishima *Maiharu Gansoku *Otonoshin Koito *Genjirou Tanigaki *Saichi Sugimoto *Anji Toni (mentioned) *Shiton Anehata (mentioned) *Gotou (mentioned) *Prisoner Number One (mentioned) *Tetsuzou Nihei (mentioned) *Keiichirou Sakamoto (mentioned) *Kazuo Henmi (mentioned) *Tsuyama (mentioned) *Kiichirou Wakayama (mentioned) *Yoshitake Shiraishi (mentioned) *Kiyohiro Suzukawa (mentioned) *Igogusa (flashback) Category:Chapters